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Jon Tracy has adapted and directed Chatterbox The Anne Frank Project for the Missouri Street Theatre. The light, set and sound design were also done by Tracy. This show has the potential to be a touching and accessible ?everyman? piece. Obviously, that is Tracy?s intent, because Anne tells us that at the end of the show. Unfortunately, Tracy seems more interested in using his complete arsenal of theatrical effects than in developing a vehicle that leads the audience to that end.

The script incorporates excerpts from Anne Frank?s diary with the stage convention of a Greek chorus and nearly every other theatrical effect possible. The five actors that people the stage are all very good, and handle the plethora of theatrical effects with aplomb. The actors behave alternately as chorus or Foley artist and then do a bit of acting in between those conventions. Sometimes the conventions work, and at other times they serve only to distract from the story. Too often the sound and lighting effects draw attention to themselves and overshadow the many fine acting moments of this very able and talented cast.

Taking a cue from the title and the documentary tone used by the actors, the show is a combination of theatre styles and is similar to The Laramie Project. Only one character remains constant throughout the show, Lyndsy Kail (Anne). The remaining actors, Angelique Wilkie, Terry Boero, Mike Glynn, and Dorian Sammartino, play a wide range of other characters to help tell the story. All of the actors were committed, adaptable, well-rehearsed, and handle the choreography with energy. Their simple costume and vocal alterations were more than adequate to handle multiple characters which belies the need for some of the more heavy-handed theatrical effects Tracy has incorporated.

Kail does a fine job of carrying the weight of the play, and imbues Anne with a youthful energy that is often missing in plays about this Jewish girl whose life was taken during the Holocaust. She reveals a naivete that is convincing for the role, and her mood swings from mischief to terror are well done. Sometimes her attitudes seem more 2006 than 1942, but that is largely influenced by the script adaptation. Dorian Sammartino is also a bright actor. He has a real facility with making physical characterizations, and convincingly plays several characters from young man to older dentist.

The setting for this production is a suggestion. The walls are planks of rough-hewn wood with numbers scribbled along them. The set feels like being in a box or crate, and the small central platform and trunk supply additional hollow and noisy sound elements. The actors switch from chanting random numbers, to acting out scenes. The sound effects are a mixture of piped in effects (music), overturned chairs, stamping feet, and actor-generated hums or heavy breathing. Conventions for moving from one scene to another were handled by dramatic lighting, sound effects, choral statements of date, and rigidly choreographed stage movements.

This is where the effectiveness of the performance breaks down. Sometimes the business of chanting numbers, and stamping feet, and slamming the trunk lid are more of a distraction than necessary to transition from one vignette to another. It all looks and sounds very theatrical, but it feels like guerilla theatre. Perhaps that is Tracy?s intent? Some conventions are repetitious. The first time Sammartino hops onto the floor and says ?Click? to cue a light and scene change, it is okay. Even seeing it again is fine, but the effect is over-used. The actors also slammed the lid on the trunk to the point where some women in the audience jumped and I developed a headache.

Much of the dialogue from the chorus is informative, but can also be confusing. The show suffers from a disconnection between the documentary-like choral parts, and the personal connections between actors that never quite reach fruition. Many poignant moments are chopped up by loud and distracting choral bits, and the result is to dash cold water on both the actor and the audience. Perhaps this is also by design. It might serve to guide the audience to a shared sense of life cut short by forces outside reasonable control; where normal activity and relationships are cruelly interrupted and ruined. Unfortunately, it also keeps the audience at a distance.

Overall, this production could do with a little less theatricality and a less-is-more approach to telling a story. A more clearly defined theme for the show would also help. Should the audience feel hope or despair, anger, helplessness, or nothing at all? For all that, the acting is quite good, and Tracy?s vision of Anne as a ?Chatterbox? is a refreshing twist on a familiar story that never quite grows old. The small number of people in the audience appreciated the show, and the actors are worthy of a larger crowd. Chatterbox the Anne Frank Project is playing through next weekend at The Missouri Street Theatre. Call their box office at (707) 422-1598 for tickets and details.

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